Our $21 Challenge - part 2

We're part-way through the $21 challenge week and so far I've spent the $21 on ham, cheese, icing sugar, apples and mince. It didn't go far but our pantry is mostly full so we should be okay. Job done right? I came in (technically) at $21.09 and thought that I was close enough. But then we 'needed' more stuff for home.

Like some coffee beans (we couldn't go without those could we?).

And I'd promised a friend we could meet for coffee in town (I couldn't pull out of that could I?).

And so the lines around what is acceptably 'feeding the family' and what is a special treat for us are quite blurry it appears. And I suspect this is part of the clarity I'm seeking to improve upon in this budgeting quest.

Despite going over our $21 (and there are 3 days to go in our challenge still) I did plan our dinners for the week and am on track with those. We had creamy chicken pasta for the past two nights and tonight I'm making chicken soup from the stock I made with the leftover bones. Tomorrow is lasagne with the mince, but I need to make my own pasta sheets, something I've never done before, because our budget didn't stretch to that and I thought it could be fun (will let you know about that!). Friday night we're going to a friend's house for dinner so its covered already and Saturday will be lasagne again (a second batch). I've also left my cash at home so I'm not tempted to return to the supermarket or fruit shop.

And I've been thinking more about why this is important to me, this $21 challenge.

Reason number one is to help me be more organised and in control, both of my spending and what comes into our house.
Reason number two is the chance to save some money and get ahead a little financially
Reason number three is to give me more time, for me and for my family and community.
Number four is the impetus to cook more things from scratch. I'm pretty good at this, but want to be better. I want to make my own pasta, butter, bread, cheese and other staples.
And the final reason is the chance to declutter our pantry and fridge and the way I cook meals.

So far I'm learning more about all of these this week....

Our $21 Challenge - part 1

I've switched perspective recently. I stopped thinking about teaching and academic work and started to think of home as my workplace. I wrote a post about coming home to work last month and my journey has continued happily along this path since then.

Whenever I'm feeling on edge, up in the air or unanchored, I think about my home as my work, as my temple and as the place I give and receive love, and I'm immediately more grounded, more down-to-earth. And I can breathe a sigh of relief again (I do so like that feeling). Then I have more to give to our gorgeous girls, and that makes me a happy Mama too.

So this path has taken me to look at budgeting - something I've not ever been good at or really been interested in before. I haven't really liked to think about money or earning or anything like that too much. But lately I've been wondering if there's another way. If we can declutter our money and live more slowly by spending more slowly.

Then I read some posts about budgeting on Slow your Home and that got me thinking about it more. Then I talked to Mum and Dad. And then I did some more thinking. And then I started doing stuff like looking at our last 12 months worth of bills and credit card statements and actually working out what we spent on stuff (a bit scary to begin with). I took my cards out of my purse and started leaving them at home. And then Mum sent me a copy of The $21 Challenge by Fiona Lippey and Jackie Gowerand this week we are spending only $21 on food for the family and using what we already have in the fridge, pantry and garden for the rest.

Will let you all know how we go by the end of the week....

Playgroup

My how they grow. From a baby girl last year to a walking, talking social butterfly this year, our littlest one is happily settling into life at playgroup, just like a big girl.
A great thing about Mount Beauty, this Mama thinks, is the way children of all ages play together, grow up together and ultimately learn together - and this starts around town and at playgroup from before they are walking.
They say it takes a village to raise a child...and in our little village that happens all the time.

Friday Blog Review: The New Good Life

Another new site for you today. A blog called The New Good Life caught my eye recently, and as I love the old English show - The Good Life, with Tom and Barbara Good trying to live sustainably from their urban property, I thought this one sounded exciting.

After having a good look through it I find the author, Mrs Good, to be on a similar path. Again we are more alike than separate to others on this planet. She writes about trying to live more sustainably at home, of slow-cooked meals, growing veggies and making her own pasta, cheese and sauces. I like this.

Just a quick post today, dear readers, as it is late and this Mama needs her sleep before the little one (and bigger one) awaken.

Happy reading and happy living to you.

Sourdough

I've been on a mission lately to produce my own sourdough loaves at home. Apart from the benefits of knowing where our bread is coming from, there's something so authentic and REAL about growing our own culture of yeasts and then turning them into something to nourish us.

My first starter or leaven went along, growing merrily, until we visited Noni and Pa for three days and I accidentally left her behind (her name was Jill) - oops. By the time we returned my young colony of yeasts had been over taken by some bacteria and despite multiple attempts to resurrect a viable starter culture, I eventually gave up and accepted a friend's offer of some of his, more robust, starter.

And so it was with this new batch that I created my first two loaves.

It was a lovely experience that took time while nature worked its magic. From the beginning steps at breakfast time to the final loaf emerging from the oven after dinner, this was not a fast process. But efficiency isn't what this Mama is about anymore. Yes, there was a time when I was very good at being efficient, but somewhere in there I lost authenticity. I loved the time spent growing and shaping these loaves. Like children, they could not be rushed into the next stage of their development and I watched with wonder as they grew in size, texture and shape.

 Now I have more starter in the fridge, slowly bubbling away and waiting for its chance to grow into more loaves. 

What will they be like, I wonder?

Loving our laundry

Well, it was time. The laundry and accompanying back entrance to our house had been needing some love for a while. Sports equipment, screws, fuses, shoes, bags, kites, dirt etc...were all mixed up, shoved where they couldn't be seen and had been weighing on this Mama's mind for a while.
And so, with cloth, spray and bags for the op shop and rubbish bin, I began a sort of the assorted stuff, re-organised and then gave it all a loving clean with my homemade cleaning spray.
Aaahhh, the feeling of satisfaction was well worth the effort. See the before and after pictures...

The Weekly Harvest

This week I introduce a new weekly post about our garden. In order to appreciate what our garden offers us, and the importance of its role in our natural and authentic lifestyle, I will bring you images and recipes of what's growing for us up here in Mount Beauty.

This week in our garden there are but a few pickings on offer. Henny Penny continues to lay a small, clean egg most days and Pippy and Poppy are growing nice and plump to get them through the Winter.
Today I'm preparing a lovely slow-cooked beef stew to enjoy with my loved-ones tonight and tomorrow. And from our garden came several welcome additions. Parsley, rocket and rosemary have added some lovely, deep flavours and I also picked some small beetroot and added them, leaves and all, for colour, sweetness and vitamins. Henny Penny's egg has been put aside for breakfast tomorrow (oh how I look forward to that bright yellow yolk...) and I also picked our first lemon and orange for the season (handy for this Mama's head cold!).

Ahhh, eating from the garden is refreshing and grounds me so. Wishing you a down-to-earth day.

A collection of fresh garden produce - even in June!

Friday Blog review: Loving Simple Living

This week's blog review is Loving Simple Living, which is written by an American blogger named Lorilee Lippencott. She and her family have downsized their life - by which I mean their possessions, what they eat and what they do. She has posts on how to simplify your life, be a minimalist and focus on things that you really need or love.

My favourite post is actually quite boring, but eye-opening at the same time - that sounds unusual I know, but you'll understand when you read it. Titled 'Minimalist Living - What we own', its basically a list of what she has in each room of the house (boring), but there's also photos of the rooms and they are amazingly empty of stuff. Now I like to have a little inspirational clutter around me - the results of play or learning on the carpet, a half-made casserole on the bench, that sort of thing - but I am inspired almost about the peaceful look of such a minimalist house.

And so this Mama is thinking that she could perhaps put things away more often. Does all the tea really need to sit out on the bench permanently? Do we really need a fish tank in the kitchen? Do we need all those backpacks up in the cupboard. I feel some de-cluttering coming on (again) ladies and gentlemen.

I read further and see a post for decluttering usable things - this is where I often get stuck. I'm usually confused when decluttering things that are perfectly fine, or I have spent good money on, or someone has given me as a gift, but I don't use - what do I do with these? It seems counter-productive to keep things that I don't use or love...but that clashes with my ideas about money and waste. This post clears things up a little by providing some guidelines for getting rid of usable items. Definitely something for this Mama to work on further.

And this gets me thinking about another book I read recently - Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative. 'Thing' no.9 is; 'Be Boring: Its the only way to get things done'. Reading this was a bit like a revelation to me because it put some things together and made new sense of them to me. Like the bit where author, Austin Kleon, says:

"The thing is: It takes a lot of energy to be creative. You don't have that energy if you waste it on other stuff."

And this makes more sense when you read another quote in the book, this time by Gustave Flaubert:

"Be regular and orderly in your life, so that you may be violent and original in your work".

I like this. I strive for creativity in my life and in the life of my family, but its been very chaotic of late and my creativity has taken a dive. This book, and Loving Simple Living, help me to make sense from this chaos and give me a direction forward. More to come on this I'm sure...

Good days to you all.